WASHINGTON, DC, JANUARY 14. ARMINFO. The Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) has alerted leading American churches and faith-based organizations to Azerbaijan’s recent destruction of the medieval Armenian cemetery in the Djulfa region of Nakhichevan.

ANCA reports that the video has been sent to Christian Coalition, Southern Baptist Convention, Catholic League, Presbyterians, Methodists Episcopalians, Traditional Values Coalition, United Church of Christ, and other Leading Churches and Faith-Based Groups

In letters sent out this week, the ANCA included newly-produced DVDs with actual footage of Azerbaijani troops, in mid-December of 2005, using sledgehammers to demolish this sacred site of the Armenian Apostolic Church. The cemetery dates back to the 7th Century and once was home to as many as 10,000 khatchkars (stone-crosses). The DVD also includes a PowerPoint presentation documenting the destruction, and features before-and-after photos of the cemetery.

“Tragically,” wrote ANCA Executive Director Aram Hamparian, “this latest wave of demolition, on top of previous attacks in 1998 and 2002, has effectively destroyed this site – erasing forever a true treasure of world heritage. These actions represent a continuation of the Armenian Genocide – a new wave of cultural cleansing intended to eradicate even the memory of a thriving Armenian presence since Biblical times.